According to the author of Sleep Smarter, there are several ways to improve your sleep and overall health:
- Soak in some sun — Sunlight helps make melatonin, our sleepy hormone!
- Ditch the devices or upgrade your eyewear — Try turning down your electronics an hour before bedtime. Exposure to blue light stimulates daytime hormones when we want those nighttime hormones kicking in.
- Implement a caffeine curfew — I mean, this feels self-explanatory. 🤪
- Be cool — Sleep is initiated with an automatic drop in core body temperature. If your room is too hot or too cold, you may not reach an ideal restful sleep. Aim for ~68 degrees.
- Get to bed at the right time — Achieve your most significant hormonal secretions and recovering when sleeping between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.
- Use high quality magnesium – Magnesium is an anti-stress mineral that is also used up by our bodies a lot to complete 300 other important biological processes 🤓. For that reason, it tends to be used up a lot! Consider checking your magnesium levels. Decreasing your stress will increase your sleep quality.
- Black out – There are receptors on your skin that actually pick up light, so one way to instantly improve sleep is use some blackout curtains!
- Create a sleep sanctuary – Refrain from making your room an entertainment center or a place where you do other miscellaneous activities. Your brain then will begin associating your bedroom as a place where you stay awake rather than the sleep-inducing sanctuary you’re aiming for.
Check out the rest of Shawn’s “21 Tips to Get the Best Sleep Ever” here.